You don’t need to hang around the virtual water cooler to know that the struggle of the “Great Resignation” and the fierce competition for talent is very real. In business, there will always be joiners and leavers. But there’s another rare group of people that are both. Employees who leave… and then come back. These employees are known as “bounce backs.”
At Epsilon, we have a long tradition of hiring bounce backs which holds true, even in today’s competitive job market. LinkedIn data showed that bounce backs rose to 4.5% of all new hires among companies in 2021. Last year, 6.6% of all our new hires were bounce backs, which was 130 employees. It doesn’t surprise me—we have a great culture and a leadership team that supports our employees growing their careers, even if that means exploring options outside of Epsilon.
Recently, I was delighted to learn that one recent employee bounced back so quickly she filled her own open headcount. According to our recruiting team, leaving made that employee realize how much Epsilon values its employees and provides a work life balance.
“I think when people go to other places and see what’s out there, they figure out that Epsilon is a great place to work,” said Vanessa Obichie, on our corporate recruiting team. “Often, people realize on day one that the new company is not what they expected. Many companies shut the door on former employees. Epsilon doesn’t do that.”
Another bounce back story involves an employee that realized a position she accepted at a new company was not quite as advertised. It happens a lot.
“I quickly realized the importance of the relationships I left, the pride I carried in our work, the power of the culture, the commitment to work-life balance and the value of supportive, visionary leadership,” said Kristen May, a senior project manager at Epsilon who bounced back in 2021. “I was lucky enough to rejoin Epsilon in my former role with my beloved team, without any judgment whatsoever.”
The word “beloved” stands out to me. Across the company, this feels like a family, and I love that about us. We pride ourselves on culture, career opportunity and inclusion.
Our “welcome back” culture starts at the top
The ethos of welcoming people back into any company really must start with the leadership team. At Epsilon, we know that people leave a company for many different reasons. Family situations change, career priorities evolve, people relocate or simply believe they will find more happiness elsewhere. This re-evaluation happened a lot amidst the pandemic. As leaders, we believe it’s important that we always respect that a person must do what they feel is best for themselves and their family. Our president & COO, Ric Elert, feels the same.
“Great people find a way back to us because we have a culture, passion and sense of purpose that is hard to beat,” he said. “If you leave on good terms and were a valued team member, and find that you want to return, we welcome you back. It’s important that we create different pathways for career growth at Epsilon. Sometimes, that pathway is simply an open door to return.” - Ric Elert
Our executive chairman, John Giuliani, is a bounce back himself.
“I have been in business a long time, and what Epsilon has here is special—the people, and the solutions we bring to market,” he said when rejoining Epsilon in 2021. “It took me being away and seeing what is out there to fully appreciate that. Epsilon is a place you can spend your entire career and never get bored.” - John Giuliani
In the era of competitive employment and massive economic and social shifts, we’re happy to be welcoming back so many employees that truly want to be here. But there is even more benefit than simply filling out teams and a quick ramp up period. Our bounce backs get to bring their experiences back, and that makes Epsilon a better place.
Amy James, a senior account executive who came back to Epsilon after 3 years away, sums it up best:
“Being back at Epsilon feels like being home.”
Whether you’re a bounce back or new to Epsilon, check out our open positions. We’d love to have you!